07 May 2013
by marisashealthykitchen
in Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: almond, cayenne, coconut, coconut milk, comfort food, entertaining, garlic powder, gravy, maple syrup, mushroom gravy, mushrooms, nutritional yeast, quinoa, quinoa risotto, risotto, romantic, saffron, sauces, scallion, sliced almonds, vegan, vegan gravy, vegan risotto, vegetarian
Just reading the name of this recipe makes my mouth water with how good it was!!!! To me this was perfect date/impress/romantic/thank goodness for leftovers food.
Coco-Almond Quinoa Risotto with Saffron Coconut Mushroom Gravy
recipe from kblog.lunchboxbunch.com
makes 8-9 cups (lots of leftovers – half recipe to serve just a few, but if you are like me make the whole thing!)
Risotto:
4 ounces coconut milk
8 ounces almonds, sliced
2 cups scallions, sliced (1 bunch)
16 ounces quinoa, dry (about 2 1/2 cups) – rinsed
5 1/2 cups water
1-2 Tbsp garlic powder
2 Tbsp maple syrup
1 cup white mushrooms, sliced
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
2 tsp herbed sea salt
Gravy:
8 ounces coconut milk
2 Tbsp maple syrup
2-3 Tbsp nutritional yeast, pinch salt
1/2 tsp cayenne
1 1/2 cups sliced white mushrooms
a spoonful of cooked quinoa risotto
1/2 tsp saffron (optional)
add a splash of water if you’d like a thinner gravy
1. Using a large pot – bring your water and a pinch of salt to a strong boil. Add the rinsed quinoa. Cover with a small vent and allow to boil for 10-12 minutes on med-high heat.
2. When the ten minutes is up, remove the lid completely from the large quinoa pot. Not all the liquid will be absorbed. Add in: all your almond, scallions and a splash of coconut milk. Also grind in some fresh pepper.
3. Stir with a wooden spoon and turn the heat down a bit. The ingredients will begin to absorb more of the liquid and a thick risotto will begin to form.
4. Next add in the nutritional yeast, maple syrup (just a splash), garlic powder and risotto mushrooms. Continue folding the quinoa until a moist thick consistency forms. Like a very thick oatmeal. Turn heat off and begin spooning the quinoa out of the pot and into a serving/storage bowl. You can also begin plating your quinoa.
5. In the same pot, you will make the gravy. It’s OK if some of the quinoa ( a few spoonfuls) remains in the pot. This will help to thicken your gravy.
6. For gravy: add all the gravy ingredients and stir on medium until sauce thickens. Allow saffron to bloom. Remove from heat and spoon gravy over top plated quinoa – or transfer to a gravy serving bowl.
7. Plate your risotto and then add the gravy. Garnish with fresh pepper and plenty of mushrooms from the gravy. ENJOY!!
Plated Risotto
Risotto
Gravy
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03 Apr 2013
by marisashealthykitchen
in Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: almond butter, apple, comfort food, cookies, dark chocolate, dessert, earth balance, entertaining, flax seed, ground flax, h'orderves, HD's, nut butter, peanut butter, potato flakes, powdered sugar, quick and easy, rice chex, snack, vegan, vegan butter, vegetarian
I have always loved to entertain but haven’t had the space in so long, especially the last year with 4 of us in a 1-bedroom apartment! But now that we have moved and have a bit more space, we are able to have more people over. And that means fun food for me 
We are still new here but expect to see a bunch of party appetizers/HD’s/1-biters in the near future!
These were super good and went fast! They are a bit gooey to work with so next time I might add more thickener but no one was complaining My mom tried them out and brought them right away to a party that weekend. See below for her changes as well.
With Chocolate – to us this really wasn’t optional
Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Bites
recipe from namelymarly.com
1 cup Rice Chex
1 cup potato flakes
1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup (1 stick) softened Vegan Butter (aka, Earth Balance margarine)
1 cup powdered sugar (less if you used sweetened peanut butter)
2 tablespoons ground flax seed
1 – 2 cups dark chocolate chips, plus more for melting and dipping
Pulse Rice Chex and instant mashed potatoes in a food processor until fairly pulverized. It doesn’t have to be flour-like, but in the neighborhood.
Add the peanut butter and softened Vegan Butter. Pulse for a few more seconds until everything is blended.
Add the powdered sugar and ground flax seed and pulse a few more times to mix it together.
Transfer the dough into a medium lidded bowl. Add the chocolate chips and stir so they’re evenly incorporated.
Put the lid on the bowl and place it in the fridge for a minimum of an hour so the dough firms up a bit. (makes it so much easier to work with!) Take tablespoon size pieces and roll into balls.
Optional – Double Boil chocolate and dip. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Naked Balls
My mom’s changes:
She used some almond butter also, instead of all peanut butter, added about 1/4 cup extra potato flakes to make a thicker batter, used ground sunflower seeds and fiber one instead of chex. She didn’t dip into chocolate- just put a dollop of melted chocolate on each and swirled a little with back of my spoon.
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14 Feb 2013
by marisashealthykitchen
in Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: apple, apple sauce, breakfast, brown sugar, chick peas, chocolate, Chocolate Chip, comfort food, Cookie Dough, cookies, dessert, entertaining, garbanzo beans, gluten-free, Mini-Muffins, muffin, oat, quick and easy, quick cooking oats, snack, valentine, valentine's day, vanilla, vegan, vegan chocolate, vegan valentine, vegetarian
We went to an awesome Valentine’s Day Brunch with some lovely mamas and kiddos This was a perfect treat to bring! Bite-sized deliciousness and no one knew (or believed me!) that these were really made from great ingredients like garbanzo beans and applesauce. They are low-fat and protein-rific, yet still have that fun chocolate bite! Plus they are super simple. I bet these would be great fun baking with the kids! (just make sure to save some for your husband! Mine LOVED them!!)
Happy Valentine’s Day!!
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Mini-Muffins
recipe from http://vegnews.com
Makes 24 mini muffins (I doubled the recipe and had 39 mini muffins)
- 1/2 cup quick-cooking oats
- 1 15-ounce can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 tablespoons applesauce
- 1-1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1/2 tablespoon vanilla
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease mini-muffin pan or cookie sheet. In a food processor, process oats, garbanzo beans, applesauce, vegetable oil, vanilla, baking soda, salt, baking powder, and brown sugar until completely smooth.
2. In a medium bowl, combine batter and chocolate chips. Into mini-muffin pan, scoop dough. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before removing from muffin pan.
Batter ready to bake!
Muffins resting/cooling
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01 Nov 2012
by marisashealthykitchen
in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: bread, brussel sprout, celery, comfort food, condiment, cornbread stuffing, dressing, entertaining, frozen, garlic, holiday, olive oil, onion, pepper, spread, stuffing, thanksgiving, tofurkey, vegan, vegetarian
HUGE bowl of stuffing with glimpses of tofurkey, brussel sprouts and apples & squash. Happy Thanksgiving!!
This Thanksgiving was a really great one! It has been quite the amazing year!
I am so thankful for my life and what this last year has brought. Although I have taught just a few yoga classes, cooked just a few meals and had literally just brief moments alone with myself (things that I always valued and still do) I am brimming with happiness and joy! There are not words to express how much I love these two angels, being their mama, how much I love my husband and how much I love being present to him being the world’s greatest and most loving father!
SO much has gone on this year with birthing and loving twins as well as buying and renovating a house all while the 4 of us live in a small 1 bedroom apartment and still this has been the best year ever. It has come with its frustrations and tensions but at the same time has brought such an overwhelming love between us and our children as well. I feel so blessed to have the amazing experience of raising and being raised by my children. Each and every moment has been amazing, even when I don’t have any free seconds, (Like right now as I type this I am still the “mama jungle gym” with the babies climbing all over me!)
This Thanksgiving we all gathered at my Sister-in-Laws apartment. Lots of great food and great family fun! (imagine her 4 year old twin girls running around everywhere and my twins crawling in every direction!)
I made enough brussel sprouts and stuffing as if there were 3x as many people but believe me, the leftovers did not disappoint us I made my go-to brussel sprouts recipe, with 3 pounds of brussels.
Last year during my pregnancy when I was finally feeling well enough to cook again the first thing I made was Butternut Squash Cornbread Stuffing. So it only felt right to make stuffing again after another long departure from the kitchen! This year though I asked my mom for her amazing recipe and we were very happy with the results (you can always halve or third the recipe if you don’t feel like you need enough stuffing for an army!)
The best thing (besides the stuffing of course!) is that this mixture can be prepared in advance and refrigerated or frozen until ready to use. It can also be used at a vegan/vegetarian side dish, a condiment or a bread spread. We have used it for spreads on sandwiches, a relish for vegan hot dogs, an easy tofu scramble recipe and in a pasta sauce so far this last week alone!
Also a great thanksgiving leftover idea (Inspired by the Thanksgiving sandwich as Terri’s): take a wrap, spread cranberry sauce all over, and add tofurkey and stuffing. ENJOY!! We loved these!
Whole Lotta Stuffing!
Mom’s Stuffing – Vegan
- 1/2 cup oil (your choice)(I used olive)
- 3-4 lbs of chopped onions
- 5 stalks of celery
- 10 garlic cloves, chopped
- 3-4 peppers, chopped (assorted colors, if possible)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Basic recipe for 3 boxes or bags of bread stuffing (I used some corn and some multi-grain) (I used about 1.5 cups of margarine & a 32 ounce box of veggie broth. My mom says to use slightly less broth and butter than specified on the package to compensate for liquid in vegetable mixture.)
- Saute onions until soft – about 15 minutes.
- Add celery and garlic and continue to cook another 15 minutes.
- Drain mixture into a large colander or strainer, reserving liquid. Pour liquid back into pot, add peppers and saute for about 5 minutes.
- Add onion mixture back into pot and cook for 2 minutes to blend flavors.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Day of serving stuffing, prepare according to box/package with broth and margarine. (see my notes above) Add onion mixture and bake in a casserole dish (or several) according to the package. (Mine was 350 degrees for 30 minutes)
the onion mixture! fyi: my mom makes hers finer which is better for using it as a spread
Stuffing: Pre-baking
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18 Jul 2012
by marisashealthykitchen
in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: basil, bread, Bruschetta, comfort food, dip, entertaining, garlic, h'orderves, olive bread, olive oil, onion, plum tomatoes, quick and easy, raw, red onion, sides, snack, toast, tomato, tomatoes, vegan, vegetarian
Love SUMMER!!! Fresh farm fresh veggies, picnics, vegan BBQs, pot-lucks and lots of family and friends FUN!
There is something so special about heading over to the farmers market and picking out the best and brightest fresh-picked veggies. Tomatoes are especially the best find since there is nothing like fresh summer tomatoes! Here is a perfect recipe for enjoying those fresh, juicy summer tomatoes. Yum!!
Fresh Bruschetta with Tomato, Basil and Red Onion
- loaf of fresh bread, sliced (we used olive bread)
- 2 large garlic cloves, chopped
- extra virgin olive oil
- 2-3 fresh plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped (or the best freshest looking tomatoes you see)
- 1/4 red onion, chopped
- 1 bunch of basil, chopped
- Coarse salt
- Rub sliced bread with garlic and olive oil.
- Combine tomatoes, onion and basil in a bowl. Add extra olive and salt to taste.
- Spoon onto sliced bread and enjoy!
Make it a party and add a fresh Salad, Guac & Chips and fresh summer corn! Even just the thought of fresh summer corn has me ready for the next party! The best!
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23 May 2012
by marisashealthykitchen
in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: almond milk, brown rice, brown rice pasta, butternut squash, cayenne, cheddar, coconut oil, comfort food, cream cheese, daiya, entertaining, mac & cheese, mac & cheeze, mustard, pasta, quick and easy, rice milk, sauces, sides, Skinny Bitch, soy milk, squash, vegan, vegan cheese, vegetarian, whole-wheat, winter squash
Mac and Cheese is one of my ultimate comfort foods and I am always up for trying out different vegan versions I love that this recipe uses 20 ounces of squash for the sauce so you “sneak” in the veggies and help make it a creamier sauce without needing extra vegan cheese. (although we didn’t really skimp on that:)) Check out Cheesy Baked Penne with Cauliflower (one of my fave versions ever!) and Quick, Easy & Healthy Vegan Mac & Cheeze (I also used winter squash in this one).
Vegan Macaroni and Cheese
adapted from Skinny Bitch in the Kitch
Serves 8
• 1 tablespoon refined coconut oil
• About 2 tablespoons fine sea salt
• 1 pound whole-wheat or brown rice elbow macaroni
• 2 (10-ounce) packages frozen pureed winter squash
• 2 cups soy, rice milk or almond milk
• 8 ounces vegan Cheddar cheese, shredded
• 4 ounces (about 1/2 cup) vegan cream cheese
• 1 1/2 teaspoons powdered mustard
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- Preheat oven to 375 F. Oil a 2-quart casserole dish; set aside.
- In a 4- to 6-quart stockpot over high heat, combine 3 quarts of water with about 1 1/2 tablespoons of the salt. Bring the water to a boil, add the macaroni, and cook according to the package directions.
- Meanwhile, in a 3- to 4-quart saucepan over medium heat, combine the squash and milk, stirring and breaking up the squash with a spoon until the squash is defrosted. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and whisk in the Cheddar, cream cheese, mustard, cayenne, and the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of salt.
- When the pasta is done, drain it, then return the pasta to the pot. Stir the cheese sauce into the macaroni. Transfer the entire mixture to the prepared baking pan.
- Sprinkle with more cheese and salt and pepper and then bake for 20 minutes.
Bring on the troops!
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21 Mar 2012
by marisashealthykitchen
in New York Highlights, Raw Desserts and Treats, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: Angel’s Nachos, Apple Cranberry Pie, avocado, Babies Blessing, Baby Shower, Black Bean-Pumpkin Seed Burger, black beans, Brunch, Candle 79, Cannoli, chipotle, chocolate, Coconut-Mint Frappe, comfort food, dessert, entertaining, Guacamole Timbale, Home-Style Pancakes, lemon-caper sauce, Live Sweet Potato Parfait, maple, oyster mushrooms, Party, polenta fries, quinoa, raw, salad, seitan, Seitan Picatta, Steamed Dumplings, Stuffed Avocado Salad, vegan, Vegan Baby Shower, vegetarian, Wild Mushroom-Squash Risotto
Candle 79 is one of the best restaurants ever as far as I am concerned! It’s on the UES so a bit of a hike for us, but makes the ultimate date night spot. Romantic, Cozy and deelish!! Check out my review from 2009.
But I went there for a very different reason recently. I had my fabulous Babies Blessing Brunch Party there. SO much fun, a bunch of beautiful girlfriends and the best food to celebrate the almost arrival of our little kiddos Benay, the manager, was amazing in helping me set up this event and everything went super smooth. The food of course was deelish!
My mom made fabulous favors: Super cute planters all prepped with organic soil and seeds and a super cute flower on top So perfect!!
Thanks ladies! Such a great day to celebrate!!!
We had a great menu!
APPETIZERS
Guacamole Timbale
chipotle black beans, caramelized onions, cucumber-jicama salsa, tortilla chips, ranchero sauce
Steamed Dumplings
seitan, shiitake mushrooms, baby bok choy, sesame-soy-ginger sauce
Angel’s Nachos
corn chips, mozzarella, tomatoes, refried pinto beans, chili-grilled seitan, guacamole, salsa, tofu sour cream, romaine lettuce
ENTRÉE
Stuffed Avocado Salad
baby greens, quinoa, zucchini, cucumber, radishes, black beans, toasted pumpkin seeds, grape tomatoes, chipotle-avocado dressing
Black Bean-Pumpkin Seed Burger
mixed lettuces, avocado, polenta fries, chipotle ketchup
Home-Style Pancakes
seasonal fruit, cranberry butter, gingered maple syrup
Wild Mushroom-Squash Risotto
cashew cream, pumpkin seeds, fresh herbs, frizzled leeks
Seitan Picatta
creamed spinach, grilled potato cake, oyster mushrooms, lemon-caper sauce
Check out my version of this famous dish
and then Dessert
Live Sweet Potato Parfait
nut granola, huckleberry ice cream
Cannoli
vanilla cream filling, coconut-chocolate chip ice cream, chocolate sauce
Apple Cranberry Pie
toasted oat crumble, french vanilla ice cream, berry
coulis, candied almonds
There were lots of fabulous beverages going around. I was super happy to have ordered the Coconut-Mint Frappe avocado, coconut water, agave, mint, lime. AMAZING!! I have been craving this drink ever since!
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15 Mar 2012
by marisashealthykitchen
in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: agave, banana, banana bread, breakfast, chocolate, chocolate chips, comfort food, cookies, cream, cream cheese, dessert, entertaining, granola, mousse, non-dairy cheese, peanut butter, pudding, quick and easy, silken tofu, snack, strawberry, tofu, Tofutti, vanilla, vegan, vegetarian
Addictive does not even describe how good this is! You are lucky if it makes it out of the blender to serve. Have fun with this and change up the toppings or get super creative and make a pudding pie or cake with the mousse.
This one is so super easy to whip up but be careful, not sure we should have mousse EVERY day ENJOY!
Vegan Peanut Butter Mousse
1 cup peanut butter
16 oz firm silken tofu (not the vacuum packed kind – I used Nasoya)
1/2 cup agave
1/2 cup vegan cream cheese
1 1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
Blend tofu and peanut butter in blender or food processor until smooth. Add cream cheese and blend more, scraping down the sides. Add agave and vanilla and blend again.
Assemble with toppings or just enjoy alone (maybe even straight out of the blender )
Toppings Ideas
bananas
strawberries
other fruit
granola
banana bread crumbles
chocolate chips
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21 Nov 2011
by marisashealthykitchen
in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: butternut squash, celery, comfort food, cornbread, entertaining, garlic, mushroom, onions, red pepper, sides, stuffing, thanksgiving, vegan, vegetarian
I’m so sorry to have gone MIA for so long! It was a crazy couple of months and then we went on a fabulous whirlwind tour of Australia So no complaining here but I am happy to be back home and back in the kitchen!! And just in time for an awesome Thanksgiving recipe!!
I have always Loved the stuffing part of the meal so this dish is pretty perfect. It has all the carby goodness of the cornbread but much more veggies than a normal stuffing, so you can even enjoy this as a great fall meal. Yum! And I just love roasted squash! Plus this dish is also really low in fat compared to all the butter laden stuffing recipes out there
What are your favorite vegetarian Thanksgiving recipes/dishes? I would love to hear from you!!
Butternut Squash Cornbread Stuffing
Serves 8 as Main Dish or 16 as Side Dish
- 1 butternut squash (love buying the pre-chopped!!), cut into 1/2″ pieces
- 2 Tbsp. canola oil
- 2 onions, diced
- 1 red pepper, diced
- 3-4 celery stalks, diced
- 1 lb. button mushrooms, diced
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 14 ounce bag cornbread stuffing
- 2 cups “chicken” flavored veggie broth
- salt
Heat oven to 400°F. Spray sheet or roasting pan (I needed 2 pans – but I also made extra squash for buttnernut mash- nice to be able to double duty the recipe!) Spray pan with nonstick cooking spray and roast squash for 25 minutes. Rotate squash and cook for an additional 20 minutes. Set aside and reduce heat to 350°F.
In a saute pan or wok – heat canola oil and cook onions, pepper, celery and mushrooms until onion is translucent. Add garlic, cook for one minute more and remove from heat.
Combine squash, veggies, broth and cornbread in large bowl. Place in a baking dish/roasting pan (use the same 1 or 2 that you roasted squash in) and cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350°F for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 10 minutes. Sprinkle with salt to taste and enjoy
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18 Aug 2011
by marisashealthykitchen
in Raw Vegan Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: agave, basil, comfort food, entertaining, green, lemon, nutritional yeast, olive oil, onions, pignoli, pine nuts, pistachios, raw, sauces, tomatoes, vegan, vegetarian, zucchini, Zucchini Pasta
I have made this dish many times over the last couple of years, sorry for waiting so long to share it with you! It is one of my faves!! And you can use each component on its own in other dishes as well SO versatile and deelish! A total crowd pleaser – beautiful and amazing! Plus it has been one of their top sellers at the restaurant for years!
Zucchini and Green Zebra Tomato Lasagne with Basil-Pistachio Pesto
Recipe by Matthew Kenney of Pure Food and Wine
Serves 6
Lemon-Pignoli “Ricotta”
2 cups raw pignoli nuts, soaked in water for at least 1 hour
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon sea salt
6 tablespoons water
Place the pignoli, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, and salt in a food processor, and pulse a few times, until thoroughly combined. Gradually add water, and pulse until the texture becomes fluffy, like ricotta. Place in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside.
Tomato Sauce
2 cups good-quality sun-dried tomatoes (dry-packed), soaked in water for at least 2 hours
1 medium ripe tomato, diced
1/4 small onion, chopped
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon agave
2 teaspoons sea salt
Pinch hot-pepper flakes
Place all ingredients in a Vita-mix or high speed blender, and process until smooth.
Basil-Pistachio Pesto
2 cups packed basil leaves
1/2 cup raw pistachios
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
Pinch freshly ground black pepper
Place all ingredients in a Vita-mix or food processor and process until well combined but still slightly chunky.
Lasagne
3 medium zucchini, ends trimmed
3 medium green-zebra tomatoes (or other heirloom variety)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh oregano
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
Pinch of sea salt and fresh pepper
Garnish: whole basil leaves
- Using a mandoline or vegetable peeler, shave zucchini lengthwise into very thin slices, then cut in half crosswise. Cut the tomatoes in half, and each half into thin slices.
- Line the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with two layers of zucchini slices. Brush the zucchini lightly with olive oil, spread 1/3 of the tomato sauce over it, and top with small dollops of “ricotta” and pesto, using 1/3 of each. Layer on 1/3 of the tomato slices, and sprinkle with 1/3 of the oregano and thyme. Add another double layer of zucchini and repeat twice more with the tomato sauce, pesto, ricotta, tomato slices, and herbs. Serve immediately, or cover with plastic and let sit at room temperature for a few hours. Garnish with basil. (or make individual portions by layering into square shapes on plates)
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